Preventing Financial Disaster With a Quality Management System

December 5, 2016

3 min read

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Widespread product recalls, underperformance, and even fatal oversights – the automotive industry is no stranger to disastrous quality management issues. Jeep and Subaru are the two most recent victims of poor quality management, suffering plummeting sales, consumer confidence and reputation.

Unfortunately, quality management messes aren’t unique to the automotive industry.

In 2013, some of Europe’s largest food suppliers entered damage control after the discovery of horse meat in many of their products. The finger-pointing began, with some businesses blaming suppliers, others blaming faulty tests, and others citing cross-contamination.

Either way, consumers who expected a level of quality control were suitably angered by the revelations. The food industry was put under the microscope, and the critical importance of standards was once again brought to the fore.

Some asked the question, could these high-profile cases have been avoided with an effective quality management system?

What is a Quality Management System?

A quality management system (QMS) is a set of documented systems and processes that ensure consistent delivery of quality products and services to the customer.

A common catch cry in the compliance industry is that quality management systems should be “checked by checked checkers.” Businesses who adhere to this philosophy don’t find themselves in situations where their customers mistakenly eat horse meat bolognese.

ISO 9001:2015 is the international standard for quality management. Over one million businesses in 175 countries have a quality management system that is compliant with the ISO 9001 standard, and its criteria are applicable to businesses of all sizes and in all industries.

Not only do businesses who are compliant with ISO 9001 safeguard themselves against the financial disasters associated with lapses in quality control, they enjoy high customer confidence, brand reputation and industry prestige.

Managing Risk With Quality Management

The 2013 horse meat scandal in Europe exposed quality management oversights in a staggering number of high-profile businesses.

Following the scandal, the Guardian reported that the traceability of food industry supply chains was “not worth the paper it is written on.” As such, none of the affected businesses could say when the contamination began.

It goes without saying that the financial losses caused by the horsemeat scandal were massive. In fact, it was reported that Tesco suffered losses of over 300 million pounds.

According to Colin Brown of ISO Consultants in the UK, the horse meat scandal occurred because “standards ceased to matter, and/or were not checked for compliance.”

“Sadly, standards such as ISO 9001 are often only seen to truly matter when it’s far too late to change events,” he says.

The Need for Compliance With ISO 9001

The international standard for quality management, ISO 9001:2015, is a must-have for any business that takes quality management seriously. The criteria outline in the standard are applicable to businesses in all industries, and of any size.

A quality management system that is compliant with the best practices outlined in ISO 9001:2015 has several benefits, including:

  1. Inspires consumer and client confidence
  2. Drives efficiency and reduces operating costs
  3. Creates a marketing opportunity and provides a competitive edge.

Further, as we’ve seen with the numerous high-profile quality control disasters over the past decade, a compliant quality management system safeguards your business against immense financial loss.

For more information on how certification to ISO 9001 can help grow your business, download the free information pack below:

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